Shaft construction.



Patented Mar'. A4, |902.;

l G. J. MAAs,

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UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

GEORGE J. MAAS, OF NEGAUNEE, MICHIGAN.

SHAFT CONSTRUCTION.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 694,397, dated. March, 1902.

Application led July 3, 1899. Serial Nn. 722,614. (No model.)

To all whom, it may concern.'

Beit known that I, GEORGE J. MAAS, a citizen of the United States, and a resident of Negaunee, in the county of Marquette and State of lWIichigan, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in the Construction of Shafts; and I do hereby declare that the following is a full, clear, and exact description thereof.

My invention relates to the construction of a shaft for use in mining, particularly in places where a quicksand is found to exist; and it consists in certain peculiarities of construc- `tion and combination of parts in said shaft,

all as will be fully setfortb hereinafter and subsequently claimed.

In the drawings, Figure l is a vertical sectional view, taken on the line l l of Fig. 2, of the preferred form of my said shaft. Fig. 2 is a like view taken on the line 2 2 of Fig. l. Fig. 3 is a horizontal sectional view taken on the line 3 3 of Fig. l and looking downward, the cap on the side piece shown in Fig. l being removed in Fig. 3 and the end of one of the end braces being shown as broken away. Figs. 4 and 5 are detail perspective views of one of thebottom end plates and one of the bottom side plates inverted.

Referring to the drawings, A A represent the bottom end plates, and B B the bottom side plates, forming what I term the shoe of the shaft when put together, while C C represent the other end plates and D D the other side plates of the shaft. The bottom or shoe plates are beveled on their lower edges for the more ready penetration of the earth. All of my plates are made preferably of steel, although iron plates may answer in some cases. All of the end plates in their preferred form are made with outwardly-turned side or edge flanges c c, integral with the body of the plate, and all of the side plates are shown with angle-flanges d d to inclose the flanges c c of the end plates. It will be understood that I may somewhat vary the shape of these respective flanges, if desired; but I have shown a simple and satisfactory form thereof in the present drawings. The end shoe-plates A have preferably a double bevel to their lower edges, as shown at a, and the side shoe-plates B only a single bevel on the outer side, as shown at b, and the side shoeplates are, further, of only half the height, preferably, of the end shoe-plates, while the other plates C D are usually all of the same height, except at the top of the completed shaft, where the relative heightof the end and side plates is reversedin forming the collar of the shaft, the top end plates being of half height, as shown at C', and the top side' plates being of full height, as shown at D.

In the drawings I have only shown one full set of the intermediate plates C D; but it will be understood that as many set are employed as is required by the depth of the shaft in any given instance.

In starting the sinking of a shaft I may put together as many sets of plates as is practical, and I unite them by means of the inner braces E F. The braces E, which unite two adjacent side plates, have intu-rned ends e c, which bear against the inner surfaces of 'the end plates, and said braces E are secured to the side plates by rows of rivets'g h, and the lower edges of said braces E are beveled, as shown at t. Similarly the braces F, which unite the adjacent end plates, have like inturned ends ff bearing against the side plates, and said braces F are united to the end plates by rows of rivetsj k, and said braces F have beveled lower edges, as shown at m. It will be seen that although the end plates at each end are vertically united together and the side plates at each side are vertically united together by series of the just-described braces there is no rigid union of any of the end and side plates nor of any of the opposing plates of any pairs of either end or side plates; but all have free vertical motion, limited only by the contact of one of the braces E against one of the braces F and that each vertical row of plates has, therefore, play independent of the opposite vertical row. When a suflicient number of sets of plates have been added to the bottom or shoe plates, the structure is elevated by a derrick over the point at which the shaft is to be sunk and lowered until the shoe of the shaft rests on the sur-v face, or, if preferred, the plates may be originally put together, starting with the shoeplates, at the desired point. It then becomes necessary to drive the plates forming the lower part. of the shaft into the ground, and to avoid injuring the upper edges of the plates I employ the caps G H, which are shown in Fig. l, said caps having one horizontal surface with two parallel vertical flanges, so as to slip upon the plates C D, to which they are secured by bolts n n, said bolts passing through holes in the vertical flanges of the caps and through the holes in the plates C D, which are afterward to receive the rivets gj in the subsequent building up of the vertical series of said plates. These caps GH receive the impact of any suitable weight or ham mer, such as the hammer of a pile-driver, and preferably each vertical series of plates is driven separately, first the end plates and then the side plates, the end plates and the side plates extending originally to different heights, by reason of the original differences in height of the end and side shoe-plates. When the side plates (in the illustration given in Fig. l) have been driven down into the earth to a point adjacent to its surface, the caps are removed and the next set of plates (both side and end) are united by proper braces, as before described, and the caps placed upon these new plates and the driving resumed; but it will be understood that none of the plates are to be driven by the pile-driver after the braces on that vertical set of plates come in contact with the ends of the braces on the other plates, as when that happens-say in driving the end platesthen the side plates must next be driven as faras they will go until their braces in turn rest on the braces of the end plates below, and so on. When the shaft has been thus built and driven to the required depth, (as, for example, through and past a quicksand down to the hard-pan, clay, or solid ledge, thereby cutting oif the inliow of the quicksand,) then the sand and earth and other dirt within the shaft can be hoisted out and the shaft is in place for all necessary subsequent mining operations.

Vhile I have illustrated and described the preferred construction of my shaft, it will be understood that I do not limit myself to the details of construction herein set forth, as same may be varied within the scope of my claims without departing from the scope of my invention.

A I do not herein claim the hereinbefore-described method of sinking my said shaft, as that forms the subject-mattei' of a divisional application for patent filed by meDecember 3, 1900, under serial number 38,428.

Having thus described myinvention, what I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

1. A shaft, comprising a series of rigid end and side plates havinginterlockin g side edges, the adjacent plates of each vertical row of both end and side plates being united by horizent-al braces within the shaft, whereby each vertical row of plates has limited vertical movement, while incapable of lateral separation from its adjacent vertical row.

2. A shaft, comprising a shoe formed of two opposed pairs of end and side plates, having interlocking side edges, and beveled on their bottom edges, with a second series of similarly-interlocked'end and side plates, separately united by horizontal inner braces to the corresponding plates of said shoe, and additional series of similarly-interlocked end and 'side plates, separately united to the correspondin g adjacent plates, each united vertical row of plates having vertical movement limited to the space between each two successive braces on the adjacent vertical row of plates, but incapable of lateral separation from such adjacent vertical row.

3. A shaft, comprising a shoe formed of two opposed-pairs of end and side plates having interlocking side edges, and beveled on their bottom edges, the pair of end shoe-plates being of dierent height from the pair of side shoe-plates, with additional series cf similarly-interlocked end and side plates of equal height, and a top series of plates forming the collar of the shaft wherein the relative height of the pairof end plates and pair of side plates is different, and in reversed order to the relative height of the pair of end plat-es and pair of side plates forming the shoe of the shaft, together with series of inner horizontal braces, each brace uniting the two adjacent plates of each vertical row of plates, whereby each vertical row of plates has independent vertical movement within the limits of the space between each two successive braces on the adjacent vertical row of plates, but is incapable of lateral separation from such adjacent vertical row.

4c. In a shaft, the combination of a series of pairs of rigid end plates having outwardlyturned side flanges, a series of pairs of rigid side plates having inwardly turned side flanges interlocking with the side flanges of the end plates, and series of inner horizontal braces uniting the vertically-adjacent plates of each vertical row and having inturned ends bearing against the inner surfaces of the adjacent vertical rows of plates, but free from union therewith.

5. In a shaft, the combination of series of end and side plates interlocked together at their side edges, and the plates of each vertical row being united together to have independent vertical movement, with a series of caps detachably secured to the upper plates of each vertical series to prevent injury to the top edges of said plates while they are being driven downward in the sinking of the shaft.

In testimony that I claim the foregoing I have hereunto set my hand, at Negaunee, in the county of Marquette and State of Michigan, in the presence of two witnesses.

GEORGE J. MAAS.

Witnesses:V

E. W. BELL, LESLIE FRENCH.

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